Salad dressings: best and worst revealed!

Rating for calorie-counters: 1/10
Cal: 445 kCal
Fat: 45.1g
Sat fat: 3.9g
Sugar: 7.1g
Salt: 2.2g
Price: £1.98 for 235ml at Asda Verdict: While this dressing might bring a piece of Pizza Express home, it’s not one to indulge in regularly as the amount of calories and levels of fat and sugar are seriously high.

Rating for calorie-counters: 1/10
Cal: 414 kCal
Fat: 36.5g
Sat fat: 4.0g
Sugar: 11.8g

Salt: 1.5g

Price: £1 for 250ml from Waitrose

Verdict: You get a lot of dressing for your £1 with Waitrose’s Essential Italian Dressing, however it’s not a great option if you’re watching your weight.

Rating for calorie-counters: 1/10
Cal: 397 kCal
Fat: 39.9g
Sat fat: 4.6g
Sugar: 6.3g
Salt: 1.6g
Price: £2.79 for 360ml from Tesco Verdict: Maille’s Balsamic & Orange Vinaigrette might not look that bad on the calorie front, it has one of the highest levels of fat in our round-up – making it one to save for special occasions.
 

Rating for calorie-counters: 1.5/10
Cal: 369 kCal
Fat: 36.9g  
Sat fat: 6.4g – highest sat fat!

Sugar: 7.0g
Salt: 2.8g
Price: £1 for 225ml at Asda Verdict: Following on from Maille’s Vinaigrette, Heinz Blue Cheese Salad Dressing is another one that is one to leave on the supermarket shelf if you’re on a diet.

Rating for calorie-counters: 2/10
Cal: 339 kCal
Fat: 35.6g
Sat fat: 2.8g
Sugar: 4.2g
Salt: 1.0g
Price: 90p for 250ml from Asda Verdict: Light on your purse but still relatively heavy on the calorie front, Asda’s Chosen by You French Dressing is a dressing to use sparingly.
 

Rating for calorie-counters: 2/10
Cal: 336 kCal
Fat: 27.0g
Sat fat: 2.0g
Sugar: 17.6g
Salt: 1.7g
Price: £2.25 for 460ml from Tesco Verdict: The family classic, Heinz Salad Cream has been around for years. Unfortunately it hasn’t been helping with our diet. If you can’t bare to part with it, try using it for dipping rather than pouring all over your salad – you’ll be surprised at how little you end up eating.

Rating for calorie-counters: 3/10
Cal: 314 kCal
Fat: 21.9g
Sat fat: 3.6g
Sugar: 27.4g  
Salt: 1.3g
Price: £2.95 for 265ml at Tesco Verdict: She is a household name, but despite promising a ‘light’ option Mary Berry’s salad dressing won’t help your diet. The delicious flavour is helped along by lashings of sugar and the levels of both fat and saturated fat are still pretty high.

Rating for calorie-counters: 3/10
Cal: 271 kCal
Fat: 26.4g
Sat fat: 2.0g
Sugar: 4.2g
Salt: 1.2g
Price: £2.19 for 275ml from Waitrose Verdict: If we were scoring on taste alone this dressing would be in our top three. Unfortunately the high level of fat makes it one to save for dinner parties.
 

Rating for calorie-counters: 4/10
Cal: 259 kCal
Fat: 22.8g
Sat fat: 3.2g
Sugar: 9.0g
Salt: 1.5g
Price: £1.99 for 235ml from Waitrose Verdict: Caesar salads are renowned for having a calorific sauce and even Waitrose ‘light’ version can’t offer any relief. In fact the levels of fat and sugar take up a big portion of our recommended daily amount.

Rating for calorie-counters: 5/10
Cal: 246 kCal
Fat: 23.8g
Sat fat: 2.2g
Sugar: 7.1g
Salt: 1.3g
Price: 90p for 250ml from Asda

Verdict: This is by no means the worst dressing in our round up, but it’s also over 150 cals from being the best. You do get a lot for your money though and the flavour is spot on.

Rating for calorie-counters: 6/10
Cal: 229 kCal
Fat: 20.6g
Sat fat: 1.9g
Sugar: 5.2g
Salt: 2.0g
Price: £1.50 for 250ml at Sainsbury’s Verdict: This is surprisingly better for calorie-counters than Waitrose Light Caesar Dressing. With this said, it’s still not a dressing we’d add to our salad every week.

Rating for calorie-counters: 6/10
Cal: 223 kCal
Fat: 18.8g

Sat fat: 2.1g

Sugar: 6.7g

Salt: 1.5g

Price: 70p for 250ml at Sainsbury’s

Verdict: This is the best value dressing in our round-up, unfortunately it doesn’t offer much more if you’re trying to lose weight. We’d only opt for this dressing if we were watching the budget.
 

Rating for calorie-counters: 7/10
Cal: 220 kCal
Fat: 17.6g
Sat fat: 1.1g
Sugar: 11.3g
Salt: 0.8g
Price: 89p for 250ml from Tesco Verdict: Thousand Island Dressing isn’t known for being a healthy option, but Tesco’s version isn’t as bad for you as you might assume. While we wouldn’t eat it every time we have a salad, it’s definitely not one we’d avoid either.

Rating for calorie-counters: 8/10
Cal: 141 kCal
Fat: Nil
Sat fat: Nil
Sugar: 32.0g
Salt: 1.5g
Price: £1.50 for 250ml from Asda Verdict: We love seeing a ‘nil’ on the nutritional label and this dressing has two, fat and saturated fat. Plus this dressing scores highly in terms of flavour too. We’ve also been known to use it as a dipping sauce.

Rating for calorie-counters: 8/10
Cal: 134 kCal
Fat: 9.0g
Sat fat: 1.1g
Sugar: 9.8g
Salt: 1.0g
Price: £1.80 for 255ml from Sainsbury’s Verdict: This would be our choice to put on the table when we’ve got friends over. It’s pretty low in calories but it still has quite high levels of fat and sugar, so shouldn’t be eaten too regularly.
 

Rating for calorie-counters: 9/10
Cal: 105 kCal
Fat: 4.0g
Sat fat: 0.4g
Sugar: 13.0g
Salt: 2.8g
Price: £1.19 for 235ml from Waitrose Verdict: In keeping with its name, Kraft Light Honey & Mustard Dressing is relatively ‘light’ on the calorie, fat and saturated fat front. It’s a great option if you want to give your salad a kick without ruining your diet.

Rating for calorie-counters: 9.5/10
Cal: 85 kCal
Fat: 1.5g
Sat fat: 0.2g
Sugar: 11.4g
Salt: 0.3g
Price: 99p for 250ml from Tesco Verdict: Whether you’re watching your weight or just trying to eat more healthily, this is the dressing to buy in bulk. Plus, it’s budget-friendly and still scores highly on the taste front.

Rating for calorie-counters: 9.5/10
Cal: 82kCal
Fat: 2.7g
Sat fat: 0.4g
Sugar: 3.6g
Salt: 2.0g
Price:  £1 for 235ml at Ocado Verdict: While it might have slightly more calories than the winning dressing, Hellmann’s Balsamic Vinaigrette is still one of the healthiest options and has some of the lowest levels of fat, saturated fats and sugar in this round up.